Rotary engine.



No. 807,297. Y PATBNTBD DB0. 12, 1905. G. L. LOPBR. ROTARY ENGINE.

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.aliila No. 807,297. PATENTED DEG. 12. 1905. G. L. LOPER.

ROTARY ENGINE. APPLICATION FILED 1,111.20. 1905.

Nosomsw. PATBNTED DEG.12,1905. G.L.L0PBR.

ROTARY ENGINE.

APPLIUATION FILED 3,111.20, 1905.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

/NVE/vof? :LBERTLLOPER ATTORNEYS UNITED STATES PATENT oFFIoE.

ROTARY ENGINE.

Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. `12, 1905.

Application filed January 20, 1905. Serial No. 241,955.

T0 all whom, t may concern:

Be it known that I, GILBERT LAFAYETTE LOPER, acitizen of the United States, residing at Norcatur, in the county of Decatur and State of Kansas, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Rotary Engines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to rotary engines of that class in which the outside casing revolves and the steam is admitted to the same through a central core having'steam-ports.

The invention consists in the novel construction and arrangement of parts acting upon this general principle, which I will now proceed to describe with reference to the drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a vertical section through the engine, taken longitudinally to the shaft. Fig. 1a is a detail of a modification. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section. Fig. 3 is avertical transverse section on line 3 3 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrow. Fig. L is a perspective view of the hub and sliding abutment with the revolving casing in section. Fig. 5 is a perspective View of the stationary hub; Fig. 5, a perspective view of the sliding abutment, which lits and slides in the diametrical slideway in the hub. Figs. 6 and 6a are inside face views of the two parts of the hub, showing how the inlet and exhaust ports are formed; and Fig. 7 is an inside view of the casing.

In the drawings, 12 represents the main shaft, which is rigidly connected by a key 23 to the outside cylindrical casing 11, which revolves with the shaft. This shaft is journaled at one end in an outside pillow-block 15, and at the other end isjournaled in a bearing 3 ina casing forming a combined steam-chest and shaft-support 4. If desired, the shaft may eX- tend entirely through the steam-chest and be provided with a stuing-box on the outside, as seen in Eig. la. The upper portion of this casing is hollowed out tol form the steam-chest 2, and the top of this steam-chest is closed by a detachable cover 1, bolted or screwed to the steam-chest, and having a central opening through which steam is admitted from a pipe coming from the governor. The middle part of the steam-chest and shaft-support is projected laterally in the form of a hub 4., whose neck portion 4b is smaller than its outer periphery and whose outer circular periphery lies inside the outer casing a little distance from the inside wall of the same. A dethe hub, as seen in Fig. 4..

tachable collar 13, made in two pieces, is screwed to the inner side of the casing and incloses the larger peripheral portion ofthe hub. In this hub portion, which is stationary, are formed two opposite steam-ports 7 7, which open in diametrical position on the periphery of the hub into the space between the hub and casing. At the point where these inletports open into the steam-chest are arranged the inlet-valves 6 6, one for each port and opening inwardly to the steam-chest. These valves are opened successively by a cam-flange 5 on the main shaft, which flange as l the shaft revolves catches under the free end of the valve and lifts it away from its seat, allowing steam to pass from the steam-chest to the annular space within the casing outside These valves are hinged at their outer edges and are free at their inner edges next to the cam-flange, and, if desired, may have springs s to cause them to seat more positively; but usually the steampressure will be suiiicient for this. In the central hub and half-way between the steaminlet ports are two exhaust ports 18 18. These ports open through the neck of the hub on opposite sides of the engine and by means of a yoke-pipe 25 communicate with a common exhaust-pipe 26, which discharges into the air or into a condenser. These exhaustports communicate with the annular steamspace between the hub and the casein a peculiar Way, which I will now describe. The large part of the hub is made in two or more parts joined together in a plane at right angles to the shaft and fastened together by screws. In each adjacent face of the two parts of the hub are formed part of the steaminlet ports 7 and part of the steam-exhaust ports 18, as seen in Figs. 1, 6, and 6a. Diametrically across the outer face of the hub is formed a slideway w, in which slidesback and forth a movable abutment 8. This abutment has a longitudinal slot 8 where it incloses the main shaft. The middle part of this groove and the middle part of this sliding abutment are made comparatively shallow, while the ends of the slideway in the hub and the ends of the sliding abutment are made the fullthickness of the annular steam-space between the hub and the casing. These thickened ends, when moved outwardly to contact with the inner wall of the casing, (see Fig. 4,) form the stationary back thrust abutment against which the steam presses. The front abut- IOO ment, or movable piston, which receives the moving pressure of the steam, is constructed as an inward projection 17 from the casing, extending to contact with the circular periphery of the stationary hub lla. The expanding steam-chamber is formed between the inner periphery of the case, the outer periphery of the hub, the piston projection 17 on the case, and the end of the abutment when extended, and steam is admitted to this space and exhausted from it every half-revolution. The manner of admitting the steam has already been described as passing in through the port 7, opening 'on the periphery just in front of each end of the movable abutment. The exhaust-ports do not open on the periphery of the hub, but open into the wide slot of the hub inside the periphery of the hub, so that when the sliding abutment is projected at one end to imprison the steam and cause it to exercise its working power on the piston of the case at the same time the other end of the sliding abutment retires into the broad slot of the hub and uncovers the exhaust-port, as in Fig. 4, so that the steam behind the piston can escape. To permit this to occur, the ends of the sliding abutment are made wedgeshaped, so that when they retire into the hub `they allow the exhaust-ports 18 to become alternately uncovered.

From what has been said it Will be understood that the sliding abutment must at every half-revolution of the casing change its position, so as to cut ol" the active exhaust-port and bring into action the other inlet-port and the other exhaust-port. This is eiiected by a cam-groove 14,' Fig. 7, formed in the outer head of the casing, which cam-groove receives a laterally-projecting roller 8b on the sliding abutment and gives it at the right time its proper reciprocating action to allow the piston 17 to pass one end of the abutment and project the other end to contact with the inner periphery of the case. K

To make steam-tight joints between the moving parts, steam-packing-ring sections 19 are Aarranged between the sides of the hub and the heads of the casing. Steam-packing pieces 20 are arranged between the sides of the ends of the movable abutment and the casing-heads. A steam-packing 21 is arranged along the edge of the movable abutment where it contacts with the outer case, and a steam-packing 22 is arranged on the inner edge of the piston projection 17 of the case where it rubs against the central hub.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

4 1. A rotary engine comprising a rotating case having inwardly-projecting piston, a stationary hub with inlet and exhaust ports, a

combined steam chest and shaft -support, a

valve arranged in the steam-chest and controlling the inlet-port and a shaft xed to the rotating case and bearing a cam-flange in the steam-chest arranged to act upon and open the inlet-valve substantially as described.

2. A rotary engine comprising a rotating case with inwardly-projecting piston and detachable collar, a stationary hub with inlet and exhaust ports, a combined steam -chest and shaft-support, a valve arranged in the steamchest and controlling the inlet-port. a rotating shaft with cam-flange in the steam-chest for operating the inlet-valve, the hub being formed with exhaust-ports opening on the neck of the hub between the casing and the steam-chest substantially as described.

3. A rotary engine comprising a rotating case having an inward projection forming a piston, a stationary hub arranged within the case and having inlet and exhaust ports formed therein and a diametrical groove, and a diametrically sliding abutment arranged in said groove, and means for sliding the abutment substantially as described.

4. A rotary engine comprising a rotating case having an inwardly-projecting piston, a stationary hub made smaller than the case to leave an annular steam-space and havinga diametrical slideway, a diametrically sliding abutment arranged in the slideway and means for shifting this abutment, the stationary hub being formed with inlet-port opening on the periphery and with an outlet-port openinginto the slideway of the hub in which the abutment moves substantially as described.

5. A rotary engine comprising a rotating vcase having an inwardly-projecting piston, a

stationary hub having a diametrical slideway, an abutment sliding therein and made with wedge-shape ends and means for shifting the abutment, the stationary hub being formed with inlet-port opening on the periphery and outlet-port opening into the slideway and arranged to be exposed by the wedge-shape end of the abutment asdescribed.

6. A rotary engine, comprising a rotating case having an inwardly-projecting piston and a cam-groove in its head, a stationary hub with inlet and outlet ports and a sliding abutment having a friction-roller playing in the cam-groove of the head of the case substantially as described.

7. A rotary engine comprising a rotating case and attached shaft, the case having an inwardly-projecting piston, a stationary hub made in two sections joined together in a plane at right angles to the shaft and formed with inlet and exhaust ports partly in each half of the hub, and a diametrically-arranged and sliding abutment substantially as described.

8. A rotary engine, comprising a rotating case with attached shaft, the case having an inwardly-projecting piston, a stationary hub having a dametrical slideway shallow in the middle and opening on one side of the hub and extending across the full steam-space of IOO IIO

steam-chest controlling the inlet-ports, a rotating case with inwardly-projecting piston, a shaftrigidly attached to the case vand extending into the steam-chest and bearing a camflange acting upon the inlet-Valve, a detachable ring or collar secured to the case about the neck of the hub, a diametrically-disposed sliding abutment arranged in a slideway of the hub and means Jfor shifting it substantially as described.

GILBERT LAFAYETTE LOPER.

Witnesses:

JAY DAUGHERTY, D. R. HOWEY. 

